Two-temperature refrigerator construction



R. W. AYRES TWO-TEMPERATURE REFRIGERATOR CONSTRUCTION Aug. 12, 1952Filed Aug. 26, 1943 I ll .1 ll

I I 0 I. 1 hr I Patented Aug. 12, 1952 TWO-TEMPERATURE REFRIGERATORCONSTRUCTION Russell W. Ayres, St. Paul, Minn., assignor to SeegerRefrigerator Company, St. Paul, Minn.

Application August 26. 1948, Serial No. 46,300

My invention relates to an improvement in two temperature refrigeratorconstruction wherein it is desired to provide a refrigerator having arelatively high humidity and high temperature compartment, and arelatively low humidity and low temperature freezing compartment.

In recent years it has been somewhat common practice to provide arefrigerator coil on the exterior surface of the metallic lining of arefrigerator to cool the interior of the refrigerator inwardly of thislining. The refrigerant in the coil acts to cool the metallic liningwhich in turn cools the compartment interior. This procedure has in someinstances led to certain difilculties. If the space between the innerliner and the outer shell of the refrigerator is not hermetically sealedthe reduction in temperature of the coils below the dew point of the airbetween the shells causes condensation of moisture from the air. Thismoisture is often trapped between the inner and outer refrigeratorwalls, reducing the eifieiency of the refrigerator and tending to rustor corrode the metallic shells.

I have found that much of the difliculty previousl yexperienced withcondensation between the inner and outer refrigerator walls can beeliminated by departing from the usual attempt to seal the space betweenthe liners hermetically and forming air passages through therefrigerator lining leading into a relatively colder portion of, therefrigerator. The moisture vapor within the" refrigerator walls tends tomove toward the coldest spot of the refrigerator and will be transmittedinto the refrigerator through the lining thereof.

An object of the present invention lies in the provision of arefrigerator having a relatively high temperature coil between the innerand outer shells of the refrigerator and in providing apertures throughthe refrigerator lining communicating with a portion of the refrigeratorwhich is colder than the coils. As a result moisture vapor within therefrigerator walls will be drawn into the interior of the refrigerator,thus avoiding the difficulty often experienced with moisture trappedbetween the inner and outer shells. v

A feature of the present invention lies in the provision of arefrigerator having an inner metallic liner which defines a relativelyhigh temperature compartment and a relatively low temperaturecompartment. These two compartments are separated by suitable bafllemeans. A freezing compartment is supported within the relatively lowtemperature compartment in spaced relation to the liner walls. Thisfreezing compartment forms a separate enclosure within the 9 Claims.(Cl. 62-103) 2 outer enclosure and may be used for the storage of frozenfoods as well as for the freezing thereof.

A feature of the present invention lies in the provision of a twotemperature refrigerator having a liner divided into two compartmentsand having an evaporator coil secured to the exterior surface of theliner adjacent the relatively high temperature chamber. Vents areprovided through the liner leading from the space between the liner andthe outer shell and the relatively cold compartment encircling thefreezing chamber so that moisture will be drawn from the space betweenthe shells and into the relatively low temperature compartment.

These and other objects and novel features of my invention will be moreclearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claims'In the drawings forming a part of my specification:

Figure l is a vertical sectional view through my refrigerator cabinetshowing the construction thereof.

Figure 2 is a front elevational View, partly in section, showing therefrigerator of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a detail view of a vent used within the refrigeratorcompartment.

Figure 4 is a sectional view through the vent, the position of thesection being indicated by the line 4-4 of Figure 3.

The refrigerator A illustrated in Figures 1 and 20f the drawings isprovided with an outer shell l0 and an inner liner II. The outer shellincludes a back panel l2, a top panel I3, a bottom panel .14, andopposed side wall panels l5 and IS. The front of the outer shell is openand the top, bottom, and side walls are provided with inturned flangesI! along the marginal edges thereof, these flanges being generallycoplanar.

The inner lining l 1 includes a back panel [9, a top panel 20, a bottompanel 2|, and side wall panels 22 and 23. The front of the liner is openand the edges of the top and bottom walls 20 and 2| and the side walls22 and 23 are providedwith out-turned marginal flanges 24. The flanges24 are arranged in substantially coplanar relation to the inturnedflanges ll of the outer covering, and breaker strip means 25 areprovided between the inner and outer covers to form a heat insulatingelement connecting the coverings as-the liner H and covering H) areusually formed of metal.

A frame 26 is provided beneath the bottom wall M of the outer shell andan enclosing sheathing 21 encircles the frame to enclose the same.Insulation 28 is provided between the inner and outer shells II and Illto insulate one from the other' while the enclosure 2'! encloses the re-3 frigerant circulating and compressing means and may also enclose thecondenser. A removable panel 29 is provided forwardly of the enclosure21 so as to enclose the forward side of the bottom chamber of therefrigerator. Access to the refrigerator mechanism may be obtained byremoving this panel 29. A door 30 is hingedly connected to the forwardside of the cabinet body in any suitable manner. The door 3|) usuallyincludes an outer metallic covering 3| having an inturned marginalflange 32 thereon. The inner metallic covering 33 includes a marginalflange which is coplanar with the inturned flange 32. A breaker strip 34may be provided between the inner and outer coverings and insulatingmaterial 35 may be provided between the coverings to decrease the flowof heat through the door.

The motor compressor and condenser unit 36 is illustrated within thelower part of the refrigerator and this unit delivers refrigerant to afeed pipe 31 leading to the relatively high temperature coil 39. Thehigh temperature coil 39 encircles the upper portion of the liner II andacts to cool this liner and thereby to cool the interior of the upperportion of the refrigerator body. A suitable restriction is providedbetween the condenser and the evaporator coil 39, to produce the desiredpressure within the evaporator coil. This coil is usually maintained ata tem perature of approximately 26 to 35 degrees F. in order to maintaina temperature somewhat above freezing in the upper portion of therefrigerator body.

The outlet of'the evaporator coil 39 is connected by a refrigerant tube40 to the expansion valve 4|, the outlet of which is connected torelatively low temperature coils 42 and 43. These coils 42 and 43 arepreferably connected in series and the outlet of the coils is connectedto an accumulator 44, the outlet of which is connected through conduit45 to the refrigerant circulating, compressing, and condensing unit 36.

A series of article supporting shelves 46 are provided within the upperchamber 41 of the refrigerator, this upper chamber forming therelatively higher temperature high humidity chamber in which productsare stored somewhat above freezing temperature. A pair of food trays 49for storting vegetables and the like are supported at the lower end ofthe main food chamber 41. A removable drip pan is supported by the wallsof the refrigerator beneath the trays 49 and the drip pan is supportedby supports having downwardly and inwardly inclined inner surfaces toaccumulate moisture draining down the walls of the main food compartment41 so as to prevent this moisture from draining into the lowertemperature portion of the refrigerater therebeneath.

A freezing compartment 5| is supported within the low temperaturecompartment 52 beneath the drip pan 50. This freezing compartmentincludes a rear wall 53 spaced from the rear wall I!) of the liner II, abottom panel 54 spaced from the bottom panel 2| of the liner, and a toppanel 55 beneath the removable drip pan 50. The freezing compartmentalso includes side wall panels 56 and 51 which are spaced inwardly fromthe side walls 22 and 23 of the liner Suitable supporting means supportthe various walls of the freezing compartment from the inner walls ofthe liner A partition panel 59 is provided-spaced from the top panel 55sufficiently to provide a space for ice trays 30 between the partitionpanel 59 and the top panel 55. The partition panel 59 may comprise awire shelf or may comprise a solid metallic covering. The coil 42overlies the partition panel 59 and contacts the same, while the coil 43overlies the bottom panel 54 and contacts the same. The space betweenthe bottom panel 54 and the partion panel 59 forms a storage space forfrozen foods or a chilling chamber for freezing foods.

A chiller tray 6| is slidably supported beneath the coil 43 and abovethe bottom panel 2| of the refrigerator liner. This tray 9| is capableof supporting food to be chilled to a low temperature. The entire lowerportion of the refrigerator forms a relatively cold portion of therefrigerator, the low temperature chamber 52 being separated from theupper part of the refrigerator and the main food chamber 41 by the drippan 50. This drip pan substantially fills the space between the walls ofthe refrigerator and may be provided with a forwardly extending handleor lip 62 which extends into contact with a gasket member 63 on therefrigerator door 39.

A series of apertures are provided in the walls of the liner toaccommodate vents 64. These vents lead from the interior of the coldcompartment 52 to the space between the outer shell I0 and the liner Thevents may be in any desirable form and are shown comprisinga ring shapedelement 65 for supporting a screen 66. Tongues 61 extend from the ringshaped element 65 through the wall apertures 69 to hold the vents inplace. The screen prevents the insulating material 29 between the innerand outer shells from being accessible through the openings 69 and stillpermitting free flow of air through the vents.

The forward open side of the freezing compartment 5| is normally closedby a pair of oppositely hinged doors 10 which are preferably transparentin part so that the contents of the freezing compartment may be viewedwithout opening the doors. These doors 10 prevent the spilling of thecool air from the freezing compartment each time the outer door 30 ofthe refrigerator is open. At the same time the entire interior of thefreezing compartment is readily accessible when the doors 10 are opened.

The operation of my refrigerator is believed obvious from the foregoingdescription. The refrigerant is compressed and condensed to liquid formand is then supplied to the relatively high temperature coil 39. Properpressure is maintained in the evaporator coil 39 to hold the temperatureof the refrigerant in this coil at about the freezing point or slightlybelow. As a result the interior of the food chamber 41 is cooled to atemperature somewhat above freezing for the storage of various productsat this temperature.

The refrigerant leaving the evaporator coil 39 passes through thepressure differential valve 4| and into the relatively low temperaturecoils 42 and 43 arranged in series. The refrigerant then passes throughthe accumulator 44 and returns to the compressor for recirculation.

In view of the difficulty of maintaining the space between the inner andouter metallic coverings hermetically sealed, I provide the vents B4 inthe low temperature compartment 52. The moisture vapor tends to movetoward this cold area and as a result little or no condensation takesplace on the coil 39. The provisionof vents 64 in the location stated isbelieved novel. This structure is economical to build and efiicient inoperation.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have described the principlesof construction and operation or my two temperature refrigeratorconstruction, and while I have endeavored to set forth the bestembodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that obvious changesmay be made Within the scope of the following claims without departingfrom the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. A two temperature refrigerator including a cabinet having a dooropening, a door normally closing said opening, said cabinet having aheat conductive lining, said cabinet being vertically divided by apartition member, a relatively high temperature evaporator coilencircling said heat conductive lining above said partition, a pluralityof wall panels defining a freezing compartment within the lower portionof said cabinet beneath said partition, said wall panels of saidfreezing compartment each spaced from the walls of said liner and fromsaid door, said freezing compartment having an opening therein and doorsfor normally closing said opening.

2. The structure described in claim 1 in which the partition comprises adrip pan.

3. A refrigerator including a refrigerator cabinet having a. dooropening, a door for closing said opening, said cabinet including innerand outer shells, the inner shell being formed of material of high heatconductivity, a drip pan supported by the walls of the inner shell todivide the cabinet into upper and lower chambers, a pair of food trayssupported above said drip pan and a plurality of wall panels defining afreezing compartment, said freezing compartment being supported belowsaid drip pan and each of its wall panels being in spaced relation tothe walls of the inner shell.

4. A two temperature refrigerator including a cabinet having a dooropening, a door normally closing said opening, said cabinet having aheat conductive lining, said cabinet being vertically divided by apartition member, a relatively high temperature evaporator coilencircling said heat conductive lining above said partition, a freezingcompartment within the lower portion of said cabinet beneath saidpartition, said freezing compartment being substantially spaced from allof the Walls of said liner and from said door, said freezing compartmenthaving an opening therein and doors for normally closing said opening,and said lining including vents therethrough communicating with theportion of said cabinet beneath said partition and exterior of saidfreezing compartment.

5-. A two temperature refrigerator including a cabinet having a dooropening, a door normally closing said opening, said cabinet having aheat conductive lining, said cabinet being vertically divided by apartition member, a relatively high temperature evaporator coilencircling said heat conductive lining above said partition, a freezingcompartment within the lower portion of said cabinet beneath saidpartition, said freezing compartment being substantially spaced from allof the walls of said lining and from said door, said freezingcompartment having an opening therein and doors for normally closingsaid opening, and air passageways between the space exterior of saidlining and the portion of the cabinet below said partition and exteriorof said freezing compartment.

6. A two temperature refrigerator including a cabinet having a dooropening, a door normally closing said opening, said cabinet having aheat conductive lining, said cabinet being vertically divided by a drippan forming a partition member, and means on the liner walls fordirecting moisture from the walls into said drip pan, a relatively hightemperature evaporator coil encircling said heat conductive lining abovesaid partition, a freezing compartment within the lower portion of saidcabinet beneath said partition, said freezing compartment beingsubstantially spaced from all of the walls of said lining and from saiddoor, said freezing compartment having an opening therein and doors fornormally closing said opening.

7. A refrigerator including a refrigerator cabinet having a dooropening, a door for closing said opening, said cabinet including innerand outer shells, the inner shell being formed of material of high heatconductivity, a drip pan supported by the walls of the inner shell todivide the cabinet into upper and lower chambers, a pair of food trayssupported above said drip pan and a freezing compartment supported belowsaid drip pan in spaced relation to the walls of the inner shell, and achiller tray positioned below said freezing compartment.

8. A refrigerator including a refrigerator cabinet having a dooropening, a door for closing said opening, said cabinet including innerand outer shells, the inner shell being formed of material of high heatconductivity, a drip pan supported by the walls of the inner shell todivide the cabinet into upper and lower chambers, a pair of food trayssupported above said drip pan and a freezing compartment supported belowsaid drip pan in spaced relation to the walls of the inner shell, arelatively high temperature evaporator coil encircling the portion ofthe liner above the drip pan, and vents in said liner below said drippan.

9. A two temperature refrigerator comprising a cabinet including innerand outer shells, the inner shell being formed of material of high heatconductivity, refrigerating means intermediate said shells andcontiguous the inner shell, partition means separating the interior ofthe inner shell into two compartmental sections, portions of one of saidsections being provided with substantially vertical Walls, said verticalwalls contain ng a plurality of spaced vents leading into said one ofsaid sections, and additional refrigerating means within one of saidsections and spaced from the inner shell, whereby a cold zone isproduced in said one of said sections having a lower temperature thanthat of said inner shell or the zone intermediate said inner and outershells.

RUSSELL W. AYRES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,019,194 Munters Oct. 29, 19352,292,405 Reeves Aug. 11, 1942 2,309,797 Stickel Feb. 2, 1943 2,314,657Norris Mar. 23, 1943 2,319,522 Schweller May 15, 1943 2,330,917 PhilippOct. 5, 1943 2,361,792 Philipp Oct. 31, 1944 2,432,042 Richard Dec. 2,1947 2,509,610 Philipp May 30, 1950 2,515,212 Gifford July 18, 19502,515,892 Philipp July 18, 1950

